Less than a year after opening the perpetually packed Red Cow (3624 W. 50th St., Minneapolis, www.redcowmn.com), owner Luke Shimp is already in expansion mode.

A second version of the modern-day tavern is currently scheduled to open in late April in the Cathedral Hill address currently occupied by Costello’s Bar & Grill (393 Selby Av., St. Paul, www.costellosbar.com).

“The takeover date of Costello’s is up in the air,” said Shimp. “But we’re probably looking at sometime shortly after the first of the year.”

During the intervening months, the space will undergo a renovation (“My goal is to make it look and feel the same as the original Red Cow, and create a brand around it,” said Shimp) that will include a much-needed kitchen expansion and the addition of a patio on the building’s west side.

While they’re keeping their current counter at the Midtown Global Market, co-owners and taco maestros Alejandro Castillon and Conrado Badilla are also advancing to a free-standing restaurant in the nearby Longfellow neighborhood, transforming a former Embers franchise (3300 E. Lake St.) and planning on a Dec. 20 opening.

After an 18-month hiatus, the neighborly Mill City Cafe has returned, with a new name — the Mill Northeast — and a new location (1851 Central Av. NE., Mpls., www.themillnortheast.com), in the short-lived home of a Porky’s Drive-In outlet (and, most recently, a Falafel King outlet).

Co-chefs Matt Kempf and Tommy Begnaud have also retained the restaurant’s eclectic menus, offering a daily brunch that features cinnamon-wild rice pancakes, turkey-lamb bacon club sandwiches and chicken and dumplings.

Dinner includes butternut squash-glazed carrot risotto, crêpes with smoked pork and white Cheddar polenta, shrimp fritters, and an abbreviated selection of small plates (Scotch eggs, cheese curds, oysters) is served 3 to 6 p.m. daily and 10 p.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday.

The bar pours from a long list of craft beers and prepares a dozen or so $8 cocktails. When the warm weather returns next spring, co-owner Mandy Zechmeister promises a patio to replace the real estate currently occupied by the building’s drive-through setup.